Driving on Vacation in Europe

Posted by Henk Bekker Jun 20, 2008

During the past decade, traveling in Western Europe has generally become easier, faster, and cheaper. Low-cost airlines made flying cheaper while international cooperation in the form of Railteam allowed high-speed trains to travel out of France and Germany into neighboring countries.

However, driving remains by far Europeans favorite way of travel when on vacation. Although there are no more highway queues at Europe’s open borders, gas prices are hitting drivers directly in the pocket.

Despite the good gas mileage most European cars achieve, higher gas prices certainly are putting a damper on driving. Prices vary widely between European countries due to different tax regimes and in this respect, the times certainly are a-changing. Two years ago, I made sure my car was filled to the brim before crossing from Germany into Switzerland – even the surcharge of the autobahn gas station was small in comparison to the then price of diesel in Switzerland.

Currently, the high-octane fuel that most new cars in Europe require is around €1.20 (US $1.86) per liter (or US $7.04 per gallon) in Switzerland. In Austria and Luxembourg, it is minimally more expensive but in France expect to pay around 25c per liter more, in Germany and Belgium around 35c more, and in the Netherlands up to 50c per liter more.

• Driving or renting a diesel? Avoid filling up in Germany where diesel recently broke the €1.50 per liter mark. In Switzerland diesel is around 10c per liter cheaper, while Luxembourg has the cheapest diesel at €1.30.

Out of the Western European region, prices tend to be cheaper in Eastern Europe and Spain and dearer in Italy and Scandinavia.